University College London (UCL) has hired Journalista as part of attempts to get big business and government to take responsiblity for their impact on the built environment.

Built environment: Course will help executives with infrastructure planning

UCL has brought in the agency after a pitch, as it prepares to launch a course educating decision-makers about the benefits of infrastructure planning.

The Bartlett, UCL’s faculty for the built environment, oversees academic programmes ranging from architecture and town planning to sustainability, energy use and beyond.

The agency's brief will be to promote an academic course launching next summer called The Bartlett 2050 Leadership programme.

Emma Todd, comms manager for The Bartlett, said the faculty’s leading role in this field meant that "if we’re not the ones who help focus people's minds on this challenge, no-one else is going to".

The two-year executive development programme, which is still being finalised, will seek to attract top executives and those heading towards top roles.

"It’s about getting organisations that have a big impact on our built environment to take responsibility for that, and giving them support in managing their real estate more efficiently and sustainably," said Todd.

Journalista will help develop research to show the business case for joining the course and engage the media ahead of the public launch of the programme in January.

Agency director Holly Sutton pointed to urbanisation, the growing pressure on transport systems and the growing importance of sustainability as some of the key drivers of the built environment agenda.

She added: "Up until now people with built environment skills haven’t been on the boards of top organisations, but we’re seeing a turning point in terms of the pressures making their roles increasingly important. This is about changing how organisations look at themselves and getting experts at the top table."